I signed with the first agent I ever queried. It took 8 months. Allow me to start at the beginning. January After spending fall 2019 on revisions, I officially started querying THE FIRE BREATHES–now lovingly nicknamed #dragonbook in case the title changes–at the beginning of January 2020. It was a new year, blossoming with possibilities. I was ready for it … Read More
Letters From The Query Trenches: January 2020
I sent my first query on January 6, 2020, and today is February 3, which means I’ve somehow survived these literary trenches for about a month. I think that was the longest month I’ve ever lived. Of all the questions rattling around my brain for the past several weeks, the primary one has been, “Are the responses I’m receiving about … Read More
Top 9 Querying Tips From Twitter’s #WritingCommunity
It’s officially 2020, and I’m back to blogging! Today’s topic was entirely unexpected. After cutting over 16,000 words from THE FIRE BREATHES and doing an absurd amount of line edits, I was finally ready to start querying—armed with existential dread, encouraging critique partners, and a querying group chat of constructive feedback and support along the way. About a week ago, … Read More
THE LAST OF US is a Masterclass in POV
When discussing point of view (POV) in storytelling, we often default to literature. In today’s blog post, I’m here to argue that a video game—Naughty Dog’s since-remastered 2013 release, THE LAST OF US—provides a masterclass in how to leverage POV effectively, regardless of the medium in which you’re writing. Let’s start with the nitty-gritty: What’s POV, anyway? According to Reedsy, … Read More
So I’m Querying: A Publishing Journey Update
This is not the blog I intended to write this week. I was going to continue the series of writing lessons learned from video games, but as it turns out, there’s something more important and closer to my heart to discuss this week—so with a deep breath and a pounding pulse, here goes nothing. I’m going into the query trenches. … Read More
Character Development in Gaming & Writing
Last week, we looked at how video games develop character backstory, vary worldbuilding and balance action and reaction scenes. That blog post received more views in two days than any of my other posts so far. (Thank you so much to anyone who read and/or shared!) As a result, I couldn’t help but expand the topic into a series about … Read More
3 Writing Lessons Learned from Video Games
If you want to be a writer, the advice goes, then you need to read widely and regularly. That’s true, but I’d argue that there are also lessons to be learned from what’s often dismissed as a shallow pastime: video games. When I’m not writing, editing, or thinking about writing/editing, I often wander back to my trusty PlayStation 4. Very … Read More
5 Tips You Need To Know Before #NaNoWriMo
Friday is the first day of #NaNoWriMo, which means this is the last entry in the National Novel Writing Month blog series of tips & tricks! So far, you’ve learned about outlining plot, character design, and immersive setting. This week, with NaNo lurking just around the corner, I’m sticking to general tips for achieving that sweet, sweet 50,000 word count … Read More